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Friday, May 23, 2008

How to BBQ Chicken

If you want to barbecue chicken there are three basic methods you can use.

1) direct grilling

2) low and slow smoking

3) combination of direct grilling and slow smoking

The choice depends largely upon personal choice and type of equipment you have available to use. If the only barbecue equipment you own is a gas grill, then you are limited to direct grilling. If you own a kettle grill then your choices are wide open. If the only equipment you own is a low and slow smoker, direct grilling is probably not going to work for you.

Direct grilling:The fastest way to cook your chicken in an outdoor setting isn't always the best choice for moist and tender bbq chicken. When cooking chicken at temperatures above 400 degrees you risk chicken that is crisp or slightly burned on the outside skin, but undercooked on the inside. Or as is often the case, chicken that is raw in the middle. The high temperatures associated with grilling will result in "drying out". However, if you like crispy chicken skin this is probably the best choice.

Low and slow smoking:The slowest way to cook chicken outdoors is the best way to ensure your chicken is tender and juicy. You can use a bbq rub on the skin without burning it and you can ensure the chicken is cooked throughout without the risk of overcooking. This method often results in chicken skin that is a "rubbery" texture. If you don't like the skin, simply remove it before biting into the juicy and tender chicken.

Combination direct grill and slow smoking:

Lately I've been favoring a combination of the two methods. I cook my chicken over direct charcoal heat for 4 - 5 minutes turning it often to prevent burning. This helps render the fat on the underside of the skin and helps prevent the "rubbery" effect. I then finish it off on my smoker for about an hour at 225 degrees. This combination offers the best of both crisp skin and tender and juicy meat.

Secret tip #1:

Whichever method you chose, make sure you put bbq rub under the skin prior to cooking. This will help add flavor throughout the piece of chicken.

Super secret tip #2:

After placing the spice rub under the skin let the chicken marinate in the refrigerator for a couple hours prior to cooking. The rub will penetrate deeper into the chicken. If your spice rub has a lot of salt in it, marinating longer than 2 - 2 1/2 hours might create an undesireable "salty" flavor. If your rub is hot with a lot of pepper, marinating longer than 2 - 2 1/2 hours might create "spicy" flavor.

4 comments:

Great tips. I've pretty much gone low and slow but near the end, I'll drop some hot lump in and move the birds close the the fire box opening, which gives it the direct grilling effect. I'll have to try the grilling first followed by the smoking like you did to see how it turns out.

btw, is there any better chicken salad than chicken salad made with leftover smoked chicken? I don't think so!

The great thing about chicken is that so many people love it. So when grilling chicken for guests, you will most certainly be a success. El Pollo Rey has been serving the best charcoal grilled chicken complete with side dishes.

Great tip! Like Chris I have been doing slow and low with great result, but the skin isn't always the best. I will give that direct and indirect method a try. Only an hour with the indirect. That really cuts down on the time. Thanks again

Love this web site! I have been BBQing chicken for many years. Even have a special chicken sauce I would like to sell but..

I agree 100% with your fast slow approach. On my Weber i leave some room with no coals on one side so I can stack up the chicken there after grilling then sauce it again and put the top on leaving a crack oppsite the stacked chicken (top on proped up on oposite side). Come back in about an hour and its cooked through but with a crisper out side.

About Me

Brian Pearcy competed in bbq contests sanctioned by the Kansas City Barbecue Society and Florida Barbecue Association. He has published more than 940 articles about bbq cooking. Brian authors two bbq web sites: The BBQ Guy and BBQ Blog. His prize winning bbq spice rubs have earned numerous awards.

I stopped by the local butcher today to purchase a whole brisket for a cook this weekend. I got sticker shock! I think back to the good ol...

BBQ Tips

How to keep BBQ hot if you're not quite ready to eat it...

use an ice chest/ice cooler. Put some hot water in an empty ice chest, close the lid and let it set for 3 or 4 minutes. Drain the hot water and you've got yourself a portable BBQ warmer. We've kept pork butts warm this way for 6 or 7 hours.

How to keep your hands clean when cooking BBQ...

use powder free latex gloves. They come in packs of 100 at the local Sam's and will keep your hands clean. You'll maintain good sanitary practices too.

How to keep your spouse interested in the BBQ hobby...

get him/her involved in it with you. It's a lot of fun. You meet nice people and it's something you can do together.

How to keep your BBQ expenses in line with your budget...

Research all your purchases thoroughly. Make sure your purchase will do what you want it to do BEFORE you purchase it. For example, if you want to learn to cook whole hogs, you probably need to consider a big cooker or if you want to cook 10-15 racks spare ribs every weekend you're going to need something bigger than a WSM.

How to continually improve your BBQ recipes...

keep records of your cooking efforts including cook times, prepping techniques used and especially measurements for sauces or rubs and spices used. When you tweak the recipe for taste, only change one thing at a time--change the cook time, change the rub, change the sauce, but try to avoid completely changing everything all at once. Small changes to your technique and recipes will help you focus on the effects better and you'll be able to fine tune the product quality more efficiently.

How to BBQ Brisket

Brisket has become one of my favorite foods to barbecue. A pencil width slice of properly cooked brisket lightly coated with some Blues Hog BBQ Sauce is hard to beat.

I prefer to cook briskets in my Weber Smokey Mountain (WSM). I receive quite a few e-mails asking for help with barbecue brisket and thought I'd share some questions I received today.

Do you cook brisket with direct or indirect heat?

I use indirect heat and cook the brisket slowly at a temperature of 225-250 degrees.

Do you cook with fat cap up or fat cap down?

I begin cooking the brisket fat cap up for the first cooking segment. I don't flip until the brisket reaches 130 degrees or so. That's the point when the bark starts to harden a little bit. Then I flip it to fat side down. I used to skip this part but wanted a little more bark and found that this method will promote more bark formation.

Do you use foil?

I wrap in foil when the internal brisket temp is 165 degrees or if it's been cooking for at least 5 hours. Most of my briskets are completely done in 8 hours or so. I cook to an internal temp of 196-198 degrees and hold them in an Igloo cooler for a few hours to "rest" before slicing.

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